cinematography

Now that the novelty has worn thin and we can consider the issue with a clear head, it appears clear that 3D movies are a nuisance for the audience, add no real value to films and impose a number of cumbersome limitations on filmmakers. There is also a fundamental biological conflict that imposes a hard […] Continue reading →

Improving your camerawork skills and, as an indirect benefit, sharpening your ability to get the results you want from your crew quickly — that is what this post is about. I will describe some exercises that you can do to move towards those goals. As with my editing exercises, all you will need is a […] Continue reading →

In this post I will describe how to choose the perfect cinematographer for you, how to attract interest from a large number of cinematographers and how to convince a super-talented cinematographer to work for very little when you don’t have much money for your project. I will also share some thoughts on the relationship between […] Continue reading →

This post is about shooting the perfect track-in shot. In a track-in shot, the camera moves in on the subject. The classic track-in shot starts with a frontal medium shot of an actor and the camera moves in to end on some sort of close-up. This has nothing to do with zooming – the camera […] Continue reading →

In this post I will deal with framing over-the-shoulder shots, a skill that every filmmaker ought to have in the toolbox. What’s the big deal with over-the-shoulder shots? Over-the-shoulder shots are considerably more laborious to frame correctly than other shots, such as close-ups, because it is not enough to frame the subject correctly – the […] Continue reading →

In this post I will give detailed consideration to the art of framing visually pleasing and balanced close-ups. I will use frames taken from my own work. In my opinion, the most balanced and visually pleasing close-up cuts the top of the head somewhere between the eyebrows and the hairline, with the bottom frame edge […] Continue reading →

“Which camera should I use?” This is one of the questions I am asked most frequently, and the time has come to address this issue once and for all. First things first: camera shopping has nothing to do with being a filmmaker. In this post I will write about why you need to start shooting […] Continue reading →

In this post I will provide a detailed breakdown of a 30-second Public Service Announcement (PSA) I made in 2005 for a competition. We shot the spot on a bitterly cold night in November 2005 in Oxford, UK. The spot is set in an exterior night location and we therefore had no choice but to […] Continue reading →

“Munich” (2005) (Dir. S. Spielberg; DP J. Kaminski) The color scheme in this shot is absolutely gorgeous. The warm/cold combination of color temperatures is nothing new, but the blue hue of the light in the background is particularly beautiful and delicate. The colorist undoubtedly deserves some credit. Classic foreground texture by Steven Spielberg and exquisite […] Continue reading →

In October 2000 I was in my final year at Oxford University and before I had even finished settling into my room for Michaelmas Term I was eagerly informed by friends that the “Harry Potter” film crew was going to spend several weeks shooting in our College (Christ Church). I had never heard of Harry […] Continue reading →

“Terminator 2” (James Cameron, 1991; DP Adam Greenberg) “Hasta la vista, baby!” No kidding. Bold use of two color temperatures (cold and hot). Crucial point: Cameron didn’t just rack focus to the gun — he also tilted down to exclude the eyes, to make the audience focus on the gun. Humans tend to keep looking […] Continue reading →

Reader’s question: As a fan of Andrei Tarkovsky I really love long takes with few changes of angle. I believe that with the utmost balanced use of track shots, composition, lightning, foreground and action within a frame, an audience won’t be bored even without sudden changes in camera placement. I understand that this isn’t the […] Continue reading →

Reader’s question: My question is about aspect ratio. I know a lot about it but I’m kinda stuck on the thought of the correlation of aspect ratio and lenses. For example, a scene shot in 16:9 using a long lens looks nice but very flat, and with wide lens, almost too documentary. When shot in […] Continue reading →

Reader’s question: Thanks for your email and invitation to pose questions. From a technical standpoint, how does web-based format influence camerawork, editing, etc.? Does the shorter length of a web-based episode influence technique? My answer: Great question! In my experience directing for the web does not necessarily call for changes to be made to one’s […] Continue reading →

Reader’s question: Please explain the process of putting digital footage on to a medium for projection in theaters. My answer: Projecting a film digitally is conceptually very simple (I will get to the details below): the film itself is simply a digital file stored on some sort of server that is connected to a digital […] Continue reading →

I have been admiring and studying Steven Spielberg’s filmmaking techniques for some years now and in this post I will share some of my findings. No written description can ever do justice to an artist of Steven Spielberg’s magnitude, but I do hope that you will find this post inspiring and instructive. 1. Track-in shots […] Continue reading →

Following my filmmaking tips and my post on how to direct, this post will look at some nitty-gritty film techniques that every filmmaker needs to have in the toolbox. Some of these techniques are very basic and others are more advanced, but you should always bear in mind that, as James Cameron once said, “there […] Continue reading →

I had the pleasure of using the Cobra Crane II on a film I shot a few years ago and I was extremely impressed and thoroughly addicted to using it. First things first: the Cobra Crane II is a crane that produces extremely smooth and impressive crane shots with cameras up to 25 pounds in […] Continue reading →

In making digital video resemble the look of film, the art of cinematic lighting is perhaps the most important issue. Much of how movies work relies on mood and perception, and lighting is at the core of this. Film lighting relies on contrast, modeling, shadows, dappling, and generally eliciting mood (warmth, beauty, danger, or whatever […] Continue reading →